Police arrested two miscreants late on Saturday night after a brief encounter in Madhya Pradesh’s Morena district. Officials claimed that the two were involved in the kidnapping of a six-year-old boy from Gwalior a couple of days ago, with two more accused still absconding. The kidnappers abandoned the child in Morena about 14 hours after the abduction before fleeing.

According to Morena SP Sameer Saurabh, the arrested miscreants have been identified as Rahul Gurjar (28) and Banti Gurjar (35).

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The police said they received input that two miscreants were planning a robbery somewhere near the Kutwar river under the jurisdiction of Mata Basaiya police station in Morena late on Saturday night.

The police said that when a team of cops reached the spot, the two miscreants opened fire in an attempt to flee. In retaliation, the police fired back, hitting both men below the knees.

Subsequently, the police nabbed them. Police officials said that on interrogation, the two injured men confessed to their involvement in the kidnapping of the boy.

The police officials said they seized a motorcycle, a revolver, a country-made pistol, live bullets, and used cartridges from the duo’s possession.

Later, the police admitted the two to the Morena district hospital for treatment.

According to the police, Rahul Gurjar is the mastermind of the kidnapping. The kidnappers had planned to demand a ransom of Rs 1 crore for the child’s release.

The police said that Rahul Gurjar and Banti Gurjar were conducting a recce on a Pulsar bike, while the absconding accused, Bhola Gurjar, and another man with the same name Rahul Gurjar, arrived on a red Apache bike and kidnapped the boy.

The arrested and injured mastermind Rahul Gurjar told police that he had planned the kidnapping to avenge enmity with the child’s maternal uncle.

Further investigations are underway.

Two miscreants on a red motorcycle had kidnapped the boy, Shivansh Gupta, around 8 am on 13 February, after throwing chilli powder into his mother’s eyes while she was taking him to the school bus stop near their house in the Morar area of Gwalior.

The child, son of sugar trader Rahul Gupta, was later found abandoned and safe near a brick kiln in Morena around 10 pm the same day.